Author Book Talk: Land of the Black Squirrels by Mwalim
Step into a vivid, rhythmic world where storytelling moves like music and memory lives in every note. Join interdisciplinary artist, musician, and writer Mwalim Peters for an engaging afternoon of reading and conversation centered on his acclaimed novel Land of the Black Squirrels: A Bronx Boheme Novel.
Blending fiction, folklore, and the improvisational spirit of jazz, Land of the Black Squirrels unfolds as an “epic hip-hop jazz folktale,” tracing the cultural and artistic currents of New York City from the late 20th century back to 1969. Through a richly layered narrative, the novel explores underground arts movements, the evolution of Black creative communities, and the spaces—jazz clubs, lofts, galleries, and dance floors—where culture is born and transformed.
At the center of the story is a visionary artist who creates an arts academy in the Bronx, sparking a movement that reflects the power of community, creativity, and resistance. Drawing from oral traditions, jazz poetics, and lived experience, Mwalim’s work bridges literature, music, and performance—offering a narrative that feels as much heard as it is read.
This event invites audiences not only to listen, but to engage. Following the reading, Mwalim will lead a discussion on the novel’s creation, its roots in jazz and hip-hop aesthetics, and the broader cultural histories that inform the work. As a longtime professor, performer, and scholar of Black aesthetics and oral traditions, he brings a dynamic, interdisciplinary perspective to the conversation.
Whether you are drawn to experimental fiction, music-inspired storytelling, or explorations of community and cultural memory, this event offers a rare opportunity to experience literature as a living, breathing art form.
Come ready to listen, reflect, and take part in a conversation that moves between page, stage, and sound.
Frederick Douglass Unity House
Amanda Browning
abrowning@umassd.edu